CALIFORNIA
Easy Reader
A Manhattan Beach mother is suing a priest at American Martyrs Church and the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, alleging that the priest sexually harassed her and then was inappropriately transferred to another church after she complained.
Catherine Bergin, a lifelong church volunteer and married mother of three, filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court last week against Father Nicholas Assi, who served as assistant pastor at American Martyrs from 2009 through last year, and the archdiocese.
On Friday, a spokeswoman for the archdiocese said that they had not yet been served with the lawsuit, but provided a two-paragraph statement.
The statement said that after the district attorney declined to press charges, Assi, who had been placed on administrative leave, had been reinstated.
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